Guns N’ Roses ‘Assembling Ideas’ for Possible New Album

Could Guns N' Roses' Not in This Lifetime tour lead to a new studio album?

Guitarist Richard Fortus raised hopes for new music from the group during a recent appearance on the Stage Left podcast, saying (via Alternative Nation) the band members have entered what sounds like extremely early development on a follow-up to 2008's Chinese Democracy LP.

"We haven’t started recording anything, when I say that, as far as in the studio doing an album," Fortus cautioned. "We’ve been recording a lot of stuff, just ideas, assembling ideas, but not going into a studio and actually tracking a new record."

GNR fans are painfully well acquainted with how long it can take the group to get from start to finish — frontman Axl Rose moves at his own timetable no matter how high the demand for new music. And there's no telling whether the lineup that congregates for that hypothetical next Guns N' Roses LP will include Slash, Duff McKagan or even Steven Adler. In the meantime, Fortus seems confident that it's only natural for the group's recent live streak to spill over into the studio.

"It’s sort of too good not to happen at this point, that’s how I feel about it," he added. "This band is really a force right now, and I definitely hope that we do, and I think we’re all sort of counting on it, and we’re also planning on it."

Whatever Guns N' Roses end up doing in terms of new music, it doesn't seem likely to happen for a while — the band recently extended its Not in This Lifetime tour, and will remain on the road through at least late November.